"Huh?"
Sirin's reply made her bewilderment clear.
This turn of events was so far beyond common sense that it had actually interrupted her attack.
But she was no longer the pitiful wretch from before, easily manipulated by a few old geezers due to her naivety.
After the humiliating defeat of the Second Honkai Eruption, she would no longer trust anyone so easily.
Just because you say you're surrendering doesn't mean I have to accept. Rather than figuring out his motive, she was more interested in permanently silencing anyone who knew of her revival.
So, she had only paused for a fraction of a second at Luo Li's words.
In the next instant, she attacked without hesitation.
As swift as the wind, she closed the distance in a flash, spun, and unleashed a vicious whip kick at him.
With her current strength, if an ordinary person took that hit, they'd likely be attending their own funeral.
But thankfully, he wasn't an ordinary person anymore.
Faced with Sirin's assault, Luo Li didn't evade, but met it head-on.
To a professionally trained combatant like him, who had undergone systematic training, the white-haired girl's attack looked reckless, but it was far from wise. Her form was riddled with openings.
So, he simply leaned to the side and dodged her attack.
Then, he grabbed her ankle.
The next step would be to easily throw her off balance.
But, a sense of crisis pricked his forehead like a needle.
Luo Li glanced over and saw a mocking smirk on her lips. The gun in her hand was already aimed at his head.
At such close range, all she had to do was pull the trigger to end his life.
But Luo Li paid no mind to the gun in her hand and instead slammed her toward the wall behind them.
He was absolutely certain she couldn't fire right now.
And he was right. Just as Luo Li worried the gunshot would attract their pursuers, Sirin was equally worried it would expose her.
Her plan was to get close and use gun-kata, but unfortunately, Luo Li hadn't fallen for it.
But she wasn't discouraged. Before she even registered Luo Li's move, her other leg shot out and clamped down on his arm.
Then, her whole body coiled around Luo Li like a snake.
Honestly, Luo Li was a bit surprised by Sirin's maneuver.
"What the hell is this flexibility!"
The response he got was Sirin's mocking face and the gun butt in her hand swinging toward his head.
"Idiot, witness the gun-kata of Kaslana!"
Seeing the surprise on Luo Li's face, Sirin could almost picture his head exploding.
But alas.
"What gave you the illusion that..."
CLANG!
A metallic crash rang out, followed by the jarring impact in her hand.
Sirin froze for a second, then her expression turned ugly.
Because Luo Li's free hand had also produced a pistol, blocking her attack.
Luo Li smiled at her.
"I wouldn't know gun-kata?"
Kaslana Gun-Kata wasn't a style exclusive to the Kaslana family.
Rather, it was a style originating from the Kaslanas that had since become standard training for all active Valkyries.
As a top student who graduated with honors from Schicksal HQ's Valkyrie academy, his original self's combat skills were anything but rusty.
Sirin's face darkened completely.
She realized that this guy's physical abilities were even slightly superior to her current body's, and his combat skills completely outclassed hers.
Her plan to kill him using this body's original strength was a total failure. If she wanted to finish him, she'd have to use her Authority.
But the price would be squandering all the power she had painstakingly accumulated. The thought alone made her ache.
However, this man already knew her identity. Letting him live was a massive threat.
At that thought, a golden halo began to appear in Sirin's azure eyes.
She had made up her mind.
Squandered energy could be re-accumulated. If her location was exposed, she would lose any chance of a comeback.
Sirin's gaze was ice-cold.
This man had to die.
But just as she resolved to kill him...
Luo Li suddenly let go of her hand.
"I surrender."
As if to show his sincerity, he even dropped the gun in his hand and raised both his arms.
At Luo Li's actions, the golden halo in Sirin's eyes flickered incessantly.
Sirin's expression was grim. On one hand, she felt Luo Li was toying with her.
On the other, his actions had genuinely piqued her curiosity, and her reluctance to pay the price made her hesitant to throw away all her hard work.
Finally, she spoke.
"What's the meaning of this?"
The moment Sirin's words fell, Luo Li smiled, a particularly sincere smile.
He lifted his head and met the white-haired girl's gaze.
Then he raised a finger and said slowly:
"Herrscher of the Void, you're in grave danger!"
Sirin was stunned for a moment, then she laughed out of sheer anger.
Her face turned cold as she pointed a finger at herself.
"Do you think I'm easy to fool?"
But Luo Li seemed oblivious to Sirin's reaction and continued:
"I know your power is far greater than this. For an ant you could crush at any moment, are you interested in hearing my final monologue?"
Seeing the utter lack of panic on Luo Li's face, his calm, composed smile, Sirin grew more and more irritated.
His demeanor reminded her of a certain bastard.
But in the end, the golden halo in her eyes faded away. She glared fiercely at Luo Li.
"You'd better give me a satisfactory answer. Otherwise, I'll make you regret ever coming into this world."
Luo Li smiled, but in his heart, a certain suspicion was confirmed.
This Herrscher of the Void was nowhere near as powerful as she was during the Second Honkai Eruption.
He didn't know what had happened to her, but that didn't matter. Just knowing this fact was valuable enough.
He glanced at the white-haired girl who was now getting to her feet, then quickly looked away.
That death threat from before was no illusion. She definitely had a trump card that could kill him.
Luo Li wasn't worried about that, though.
On the contrary, he was more concerned with whether her trump card was strong enough.
He actually hoped she would be a bit stronger.
After all, if she wasn't strong enough, the two of them might be taking a trip to the afterlife together in a bit.
A moment later.
Sirin leaned against the corner of the wall, watching Luo Li adjust his collar, her eyes growing more impatient.
"Tell me, who are you? How do you know my identity? And what is your purpose?"
Luo Li stopped what he was doing and looked at her.
"I know you have many questions, but please, one at a time."
"Hmph!"
Sirin grew even more annoyed at Luo Li's attitude. Her intuition told her there was something deeply off about this man.
But on the other hand, she thought her disguise was flawless, yet he had seen right through it. She was genuinely curious how he knew about her revival.
"Well then," Sirin stared coldly at Luo Li, "tell me, who are you?"
This time, Luo Li answered promptly.
"B-Rank Valkyrie of Schicksal, member of Squad Violet."
The moment he finished, Luo Li felt a killing intent so palpable it was almost physical wash over him.
"Schicksal..."
A voice laced with bone-deep hatred came from the girl's mouth.
But for Luo Li, it only confirmed that this Herrscher of the Void's hatred for Schicksal was indeed immense.
This was very important.
After all, to get close to someone, you either love what they love, or hate what they hate.
And a common enemy could quickly bridge the gap between two people.
"Secondly, I am a herald of the Apocalypse Cult."
"Hmm?"
Just as he'd expected, Sirin was intrigued by his words.
"The Apocalypse Cult? What's that?"
"An organization dedicated to using the Honkai to achieve the ascension of the entire human race."
Sirin understood. This man belonged to some Honkai-worshipping cult.
That wasn't anything new. There were many similar organizations in the world, but most of them were insignificant.
More often than not, they were just humanoid creatures using the name of the Honkai for personal gain.
These cults were basically public enemy number one in human society. Even Sirin, a Herrscher, looked down on them.
So, Sirin was once again skeptical of Luo Li's answer.
Compared to some unknown cult that had popped out of nowhere, she was more inclined to believe this man was trying to fool her.
If Luo Li knew what she was thinking, he would probably respond with: You're a very good judge of character.
But for now, he needed to keep up the charade.
"Of course, we have no love for those scumbags who use the banner of the Honkai to do their dirty work either."
"What I mean is, I've never known of an organization in this world that could discover my existence before Schicksal."
Sirin looked at Luo Li and spoke slowly.
"Or are you, in fact, one of Schicksal's own?"
You finally asked.
Faced with Sirin's question that cut right to the heart of the matter, Luo Li wasn't flustered in the slightest. He had a contingency plan for this.
"Anyone else would never know our true nature, but as an apostle of God, you have the right to know."
"Oh?"
Luo Li replied with a solemn expression, "Because we are the shadow of Schicksal."
Sirin didn't speak again, just listened quietly.
"The deepest rifts in this world will always come from within, and an organization's greatest enemy will inevitably come from itself."
"The world is not what it was a decade ago. The tens of millions of casualties from the Second Honkai Eruption have caused more and more people to lose faith in Schicksal."
"That's when the schism occurred. A portion of the people began to voice different opinions about Schicksal's order. We believe we should walk an unprecedented path... the path that should have been correct."
"Under the guidance of our Holy Seat, we will reconstruct Schicksal's order and lead humanity down the right path."
"The Honkai is not a disaster, but a divine gospel, a gift to advance humanity to the next stage."
"And Herrschers are not enemies, but apostles sent by God to proclaim His gospel to the masses."
"But I'm more interested in... who is this 'Holy Seat' you speak of?" Sirin stared at him intently.
Luo Li maintained his calm smile, but deep down...
How the hell should I know?
Luo Li complained internally, but he had to keep up the bluff.
"A major figure within Schicksal, who had a falling out with the Overseer during the Second Honkai Eruption."
"Everyone thinks she still lives in the shadow of the Overseer's authority, that even her dissatisfaction is just powerless posturing."
"But what they don't know is that the war has already begun. The Holy Seat will eventually declare to the entire world what the true order of Schicksal is."
Luo Li looked at the stunned Sirin. It seemed his bullshit was working.
To make it more believable, even fabrication needed a prototype.
And the prototype Luo Li chose was the principal of the Far East Branch, Theresa.
Although he had never met her, he had heard stories about her.
As the head of the Apocalypse family and the granddaughter of the current Schicksal Overseer, Otto Apocalypse, she was known to be on extremely bad terms with him.
Due to ideological differences, she had a major falling out with Schicksal, to the point of leaving with the former Saintess to create St. Freya High School in the Far East.
Basically everyone in Schicksal knew that while the Far East Branch under Theresa's control was still nominally part of Schicksal, it was effectively semi-independent.
It bore a striking resemblance to Anti-Entropy, which was once Schicksal's North American Branch.
Because of this, many believed Theresa to be ruthlessly ambitious, plotting to carve out her own territory.
Her life story fit Luo Li's requirements perfectly, so he just gave it a little artistic embellishment.
And so, without Ms. Theresa's knowledge, she had become the shadow of the Schicksal church, the Honkai's number one lackey, the spiritual totem of countless cultists, and the Holy Seat of the Apocalypse Cult.
My apologies, Ms. Theresa, whom I've never met. I'll apologize to you if I get the chance.
Sirin's reaction to Luo Li's words was... like watching a clumsy clown.
It wasn't that she completely dismissed what he said; after all, she wasn't the Herrscher of Sentience, so she couldn't judge if he was telling the truth.
What she found laughable was his ignorance.
As an apostle of the Honkai, her mission was never to bring salvation to humanity, nor did the Honkai have any intention of coexisting with them.
If there was any gift the Honkai had for humanity, it was complete and utter destruction.
But Sirin didn't mind. After the crushing defeat of the Second Honkai Eruption, she had learned the frustration of fighting alone.
If a powerful organization could offer her assistance, she wouldn't mind using them for a while.
The prerequisite being... that this man wasn't just feeding her a line.
"So, what about you? Why did you betray Schicksal?"
Luo Li's expression didn't change, but his mind paused for a moment. Her question was unexpected.
Wait, aren't you supposed to ask me to prove my identity?
But seeing the curiosity on her face, he knew he had to answer immediately.
Once her suspicion crossed a certain threshold, death would surely be waiting for him.
Fortunately, while it wasn't in his script, the overall strategy was set. It was just a matter of using a common enemy to get closer.
So, the next step was easy: just slander the hell out of Schicksal.
Based on his memories of life in the Schicksal Valkyrie academy, Luo Li found it hard to believe that an organization that produced Valkyries who were practically paragons of human morality could have a massive dark side.
But, my apologies, Lord Overseer. I don't mean to slander the organization and you. I'll write a self-criticism report later, if I make it back alive...
And so, Luo Li showed her the mark on his arm.
Sirin showed a rare sign of surprise.
"Eh, a Stigmata? An awakened one, at that?"
She was starting to believe him a little. While Stigmata awakeners were rare, there were quite a few. But a male Stigmata awakener was a real novelty.
But she only believed him a little.
"You're not trying to win my trust with just a Stigmata, are you?"
"No, I'm answering your question, showing you my origin." Luo Li put on an appropriately pained expression. "This is the root of my suffering."
Sirin was curious again.
But Luo Li couldn't shake the feeling that this Herrscher of the Void was far too emotional.
She didn't seem like a monster who could wipe out tens of millions with a single thought, but more like a rebellious high school student.
But the thought flashed by in an instant. The fact remained that she had the power to crush him like a bug, and he still needed to play along.
"Schicksal is far from the shining beacon it appears to be. Its dark side is something you can never imagine." As he said this, Luo Li felt his conscience prickle.
However, to his surprise, the girl in front of him reacted even more strongly.
Her face was contorted in a snarl, her eyes filled with an unquenchable hatred.
"Of course I know how dark Schicksal is!"
"No one understands Schicksal's darkness better than I do!!!"
Seeing the Herrscher girl suddenly get triggered for some reason, Luo Li was taken aback.
Wait, why are you more worked up than I am?
But the fact that she was triggered by this meant she cared about it.
Luo Li instantly grasped the key point. He knew what he had to do.
After organizing his thoughts, Luo Li spoke slowly, his voice filled with an unconcealable sorrow.
"I'm an orphan. I've been in an orphanage for as long as I can remember."
"Everyone at the orphanage was very kind. I loved it there."
"Until one day, after a physical check-up, everything changed."
"I was taken away by a group of people in white coats, along with countless other children."
"They promised us a new life."
This part wasn't a lie. He was just recounting the first dozen or so years of this world's Luo Li's life.
What came next was his own creative spin.
But Luo Li noticed, had the hostility on the Herrscher girl's face lessened a bit?
"It took less than a day to fall from heaven to hell. The new life they promised us was to be lab rats."
"We were treated like animals. I saw with my own eyes my companions being dissected, sliced up, like livestock in a slaughterhouse."
"Day by day, my companions died one by one, until in the end, I was the only one left."
"My memories were erased, and I was used as a weapon by Schicksal. They gave me a nice-sounding name, Valkyrie (Or knight)."
"Until one day, the Holy Seat found me and restored my memories. And so, the rest of my life would be lived for a single purpose."
"And that is revenge. Revenge against Schicksal, at any cost."
Filled with guilt, Luo Li proceeded to slander Schicksal and the Overseer.
But when he came to, he found the Herrscher girl staring straight at him, her eyes filled with a deep hatred.
What's going on? Did I blow my cover?
Luo Li's heart sank.
Then, he heard her say, "I'll believe you, for now."
"???"
Luo Li suspected he had misheard. Her single sentence had completely shut down all the further bluffs he had prepared.
Looking at the faded hostility on her face, he felt—and he wasn't sure if it was an illusion—a hint of closeness in her eyes.
This discovery sent an inexplicable chill down his spine.
Wait, what's happening?
Are Herrschers this gullible?
"Tell me, then. Your purpose, and... the danger that's approaching me."
Luo Li felt things had gone far beyond his expectations. It wasn't that his plan was failing.
Quite the opposite. The fact that she believed him so quickly had rendered all his subsequent contingency plans useless.
The progress was so smooth that it made him suspect this seemingly simple-minded Herrscher was just playing him.
But alas, the arrow was already on the bowstring. He had to fire.